World number two Rafael Nadal crashes out of Aussie Open
The fifth seed ended the world No 2’s chances of securing a 21st Grand Slam title after a four-hour and five-minute epic in Melbourne; Tsitsipas will face Daniil Medvedev in the semi-finals
Stefanos Tsitsipas produced a remarkable comeback from two sets down to beat Rafael Nadal and reach the semi-finals of the Australian Open.
The fifth seed and his opponent spent four hours and five minutes on court and Tsitsipas showed exceptional problem-solving and determination to overcome his slow start and win 3-6 2-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 7-5.
It is only Tsitsipas’ second victory over Nadal in eight meetings and his reward will be an encounter with the in-form Daniil Medvedev in the semi-final.
For Nadal, the defeat marks only the second time in his career that he has lost a match after securing the first two sets.
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It also ends his quest, at this Grand Slam, to secure a 21st Grand Slam title. Instead, he remains level with Roger Federer at the top of the all-time standings, with regard to men’s Grand Slam titles.
Novak Djokovic, who still remains in the tournament and faces qualifier Aslan Karatsev in the semi-finals, currently sits on 17 Grand Slam titles.